Wolf's Head Legion
One of the strongest crusading orders that played a part in the catastrophic 3rd Crusade. It is also a key partner in the alliance of knightly orders, The Ecclesiastical Order of the Holy Sepelchre. Known for their piety and savagery, the order is feared throughout the known world. Origins Started in the Rudgir Dynasty that rules over the city-state of Oslava, they rose to prominence as the Rudgir's personal knightly force and retinue. The name stems from the legend of the founding of the order; when the Orders Primate Granislav slayed the great wolf of wirding, which had been bewitched by a powerful witch. It is said that upon slaying the wolf, Granislav instantly died. The then Chaptermaster Lucian Rudgir ordered the wolf's head cut off and kept as a trophy in memory of the brave Granislav. Leadership The order was once led entirely by the encumbent heir of the Rudgir royal family. Whilst the heir still has a position of honour amongst the order leaders, that of Wolf's Claw, by the middle of the 5th period military needs required the highest positon of Chapter Master be taken by a knight of great experience. The 3rd in command is usually known as the chapter's Primate and handles religious affairs within the order. Equipment/Heraldry The knights are equipped in the classic Oslavian fashion; with short chain-mail vest and skirt, large curve bladed sword, thick wooden metal rimmed shield painted with the Wolf's Head crest, heavy iron basinet with nasal guard, large Ordinian horse without armour and a long oak lance usually about 5ft in length. The heraldry of the order comes from the origin legend, the wolf's head being adopted as the defacto symbol of the order completely by the middle of the 3rd period. Strength/Tactics Due to the nature of the order, it started extremely small. The bodyguard/retinue usually consisted of around 10 armoured knights and 50 squires. The squires were not considered fully fledged members of the order. The order at the time was paid for entirely by the knights who entered it's service, who were without fail members of the Oslovian elite (usually the 2nd/3rd son) . Considerably later on, during the reign of Endern Rudgir as Chaptermaster, the order adopted the Knight Fee system in order to allow more knights to join. This was due to the growth of other knightly orders in the surrouding city states and the requirement of matching the heavy cavalry contingents which each of these offered their city state. The order first grew to arround 50 Knights with 200 squires, making it the 3rd largest knightly order in the realm. It's current numbers, at full strength, are 100 Knights and 220 squires. However it is somewhat understrength after a series of defeats, first at the hands of Magnus Vegard to the north then during the disastrous 3rd crusade to the east. History The early order history is rather modest, starting off as an unnamed knightly retinue for the lord of Oslava. As the retinue became more dominant in the house of Rudgir, the connections between the two intertwined. Male heirs fought in the retinue and it is this connection of royal blood which allowed the Wolf's head to expand so easily. The Primate was initially a position within the knightly order for the 2nd, 3rd or 4th son of the king to become a warrior priest, allowing him some dignity whilst showing that he is not in line for the throne. When the primate Granislav slew the Wirding wolf, the position became more prominant within the order and eventually the order took it's name from the Wolf becoming an autononmous order. Though still heavy entwined with the royal family of Oslava, the order continued to grown into it's own eventually replacing the leadership of the Rudgir royal family with that of experienced knightly veterans. It was during the 1st Crusade that the need for military experience at the head of the chapter became apparent. The leader of the Wolf's Head at the time was Endern Rudgir, a young and inexperienced knight. He led a costly and failed allied attack on Undir Castle in which most of the forces under his command perished. It is thought that whilst his knightly retinue fought well, he lacked control over the rest of his forces and after most of these fled, he and his immediate guard were massacred in the courtyard of the castle. The Order became the strongest of the allied forces during the second crusade under the mighty Thraldir Harcand. He was the first non royal leader of the Wolf's Head and is a legendary figure amongst all knights. He was a key asset during the second crusade and brought back the armour of those who had fallen at Undir castle during the second crusade. He retired undefeated from combat due to old age. Part in 3rd Crusade: Survived the fraught naval crossing largely in tact only to be annihilated, along with the rest of the allied forces, on the landing beach. Most of the soldiers were cut down in the shallow water whilst the native help from Erum dallied behind their wall. The knights on the other hand struggled to wade through the water and were shot down by enemy archers and wizards. This massacre has led to the Wolf's Head being leaderless, as the Chaptermaster fell on the Finsian coast. Category:Religious Order Category:Knightly Order